


By the Seashore

by Statementends (Blueberryshortcake)



Series: The Binding Series [1]
Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Bad Acting, Beach Holidays, Cousin AU, Fluff, Gen, Gerard is 16 but he does his best, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-05-07
Packaged: 2020-02-27 16:50:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18743098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blueberryshortcake/pseuds/Statementends
Summary: Martin’s Mum needs a day off and leaves Gerard in charge, but Martin really wants to go to the beach. Gerard helps Martin get Jon’s attention.





	By the Seashore

“I just need one day out.”

“Is there any… emergency numbers or… anything?” Gerard asked. His Aunt strode adjusting her dress and grabbing a glittery purse. 

“You’re sixteen, Gerard. You can handle it.” 

“Yeah, but--” 

The door of their little hotel room shut. She didn’t hesitate. 

Gerard sighed. 

Stuck in Bournemouth on ‘vacation’ with his aunt wasn’t the ideal summer. Mother hand shunted him off because of some sort of contact that got twitchy about strangers. Even sixteen-year-old ones apparently. He had been eager at first. Getting to live in the ‘real world.’ It only took two days for the sparkle to wear off. The real world was boring and ignorant. Having his aunt go out might have been a relief except…

“Mum said we could go to the beach today.” 

Gerard turned. His eight-year-old cousin’s round freckled face was crestfallen.

“She can take you tomorrow,” Gerard said. “Haven’t you been going all week?”

Martin looked down utterly disappointed.

Gerard had never spent time with his younger cousin before. The boy was tall for his age, chubby, and painfully shy. He looked like he should be frolicking in a field somewhere. Beside Gerard it was almost comical how sunshine and rainbows the kid was. The entire trip Martin had been trying to be helpful for his mother. He didn’t demand for anything. He did as asked. He tried to talk to Gerard a few times, but stumbled over his words. 

Honestly Gerard didn’t really have any sort of interest in him, but… it was hard not to feel bad. The only thing Martin seemed excited for was the prospect of the beach, which is apparently what you do when you go to Bournemouth. Everyday this Aunt gave a huffy sigh and took the boy’s hand off to sand and surf. She asked if Gerard wanted to come. Gerard declined. He was happy enough to bum cigarettes off the hotel staff and walk around the place. 

Being stuck inside with a mopey nine-year-old no matter how well-behaved didn’t sound appealing. 

Gerard sighed. “Fine. Get your stuff. I’m not going in though so you better actually know how to swim.” 

Martin looked torn. “Mum said…”

“That she was going out and I could handle things. We can either go, or stay here all day. Up to you.” Gerard crossed his arms. 

“You won’t tell?”

“Not if you don’t.”

Martin nodded his face splitting into a grin. He ran over to his already laid out items for the beach. Gerard grabbed the pack of his Aunt’s cigarettes. Payment for babysitting.

“Ready?”

“Yes, Gerard!” 

“Alright.” 

 

\--

 

It wasn’t too bad. He lit a cigarette and sat on a towel. He was too hot in his dark clothing, but didn’t want to take off his coat. Martin splashed in the shallows and seemed to be having fun, although every so often he would look around as if he were waiting for something to happen.

Still, good deed done and all that. Gerard set himself down for a long boring day pulling out his cassette player and putting on his headphones. 

He came back into awareness noticing a skinny kid wandering down the shore unaccompanied by an adult. He looked about Martin’s age, maybe younger. He seemed unbothered by his lack of supervision. After surveying the beach he plopped himself down in the sand, and opened the book he was carrying. Hm. Weird. 

Martin seemed to have noticed the other boy as well. Gerard watched as his little cousin slowly advanced. The bookish boy didn’t take notice, completely absorbed. He jerked up, startled when he finally saw that Martin was standing over him. 

Martin said something.

The boy said something back, shaking his head.

Martin spoke again.

The boy wildly gestured as if to emphasis his book.

Martin nodded and backed off looking sad as soon as he was behind the other boy. He was headed in Gerard’s direction. 

Gerard brought down his headphones. Huh.

“What?”

“Nothing…” Martin sat down in the sand beside him. He kept looking in the skinny boy’s direction. Martin had a hand on his round cheek, completely focused.

Gerard looked between the two boys.

“So…” Gerard said. “Who’s that?” It was a sign of how bored he was, but still, he was curious and he wasn’t known for locking up his curiosity. 

“Jon,” Martin sighed wistfully.

“Oh,” Gerard said nodding. “Jon.” 

“Does he come to the beach often?” Gerard asked already taking a guess.

“Um… um yes. Yes, sometimes,” Martin admitted. “He comes to the beach to read.”

Gerard didn’t quite know what was happening. He didn’t interact with children his age much, even when he was Martin’s age. 

“Are you… friends?” That didn’t seem right.

“Oh, no. Well… maybe… I uh… he likes to read.”

“He doesn’t want to build a … sand … castle or play or something?” 

Martin shrugged. His gaze didn’t leave ‘Jon.’ 

“I’m going to do you a favour,” Gerard said slowly, “But there are rules.”

“Huh?”

“You stay in this area and meet me at the parking lot at six. You have a watch right?”

“Are you leaving?!” Martin seemed to be about to protest.

Gerard saw a waterproof Mickey Mouse watch on his cousin’s wrist. 

“Do you promise or not?”

Martin nodded, still frowning. 

“Alright. Pretend you don’t know me, and when I steal his book tell me to get lost.”

“Steal his what?” Martin yelped.

Before he could stop him Gerard got up, brushed the sand off himself and strode over to the skinny kid. He bent over and plucked the book from him.

“Hey!” Jon looked up at him glaring. “That’s mine.”

“Mine now,” Gerard said, no sympathy in his voice. As an unsocialized goth with a mother that didn’t necessarily care about his behavior Gerard had had his share of bullies. He’d like to think he could pull off the attitude pretty well. 

“Hey! Stop it!” Martin protested running up behind him. “Leave him alone!” There was an upset blush on his face.

“Get lost, kid,” Gerard told him.

Martin looked like he just might, not quite understanding the ruse, but he landed on more anger than fear.

“No! You--you get lost--leave him alone and give his book back!” Martin demanded. 

Gerard lifted his hands and rolled his eyes. “Fine, whatever kid.” He tossed the book and Martin fumbled, but managed to catch it before it fell on the sand. 

“Losers,” Gerard added as emphasis and walked away. 

“Are you alright, Jon?” Martin asked sounding utterly concerned. Gerard maybe should have explained the plan better. He wasn’t that convincing was he? Oh well, it did seem to work.

“Fine,” Jon said stiffly. “I’m… it’s fine I’m used to it.”  

Martin gasped a bit.

“You’re… Martin, right? Thank you… I--I could have handled him, but still… I appreciate it.” The kid talked like an old man. 

Gerard was too far to hear them anymore. He was used to surveillance so he set himself up aways off the sand on a giant rock. He kept an eye. It wouldn’t do for the both of them to run into an actual dangerous person… or something else. 

Looking out over the ocean Gerard could think of a dozen terrifying things that could make quick work of two little boys, but it seemed Jon didn’t have a swim suit. He took off his shoes and he and Martin ran through the shallows, collected seashells, did the little kid stuff Gerard never got to do. 

He lit another cigarette. Rather than bitterness he found himself feeling happy on Martin’s behalf. All his shyness seemed to dissipate with Jon. Jon seemed to do a lot of the talking and Martin hung on his every word. Both boys were smiling the whole time. 

Martin was late to the parking lot, but Gerard didn’t mind. 

“So, how did it go?”

“Why did you do that!?” Martin demanded. All the shyness and fear he had towards his older cousin was gone with his indignancy. 

“He wasn’t going to stop reading,” Gerard shrugged. 

“That doesn’t mean you get to bully Jon!” Martin said.

“I wasn’t really.”

“You stole his book!” Martin said like it was the most vicious crime Gerard could have committed. 

Gerard started walking back towards the hotel, Martin followed although still tried to chew him out… like a puppy with a shoelace. 

“Alright, alright,” Gerard waved his hand. “I promise I will not interfere with you and your Jon again.”

“I…” Martin hesitated. “It was  _ wrong _ .”

“Sure,” Gerard agreed.

“But… um… don’t do it again, but…” 

“You’re welcome, Martin.” 

“I just--I just like him a lot,” Martin said in his own defense. “He’s so smart, and fun. He’s a local. He lives nearby with his Grandmother. He says he likes to walk around and explore, and that the beach had been his favourite place lately…” 

Gerard snorted. The kid was besotted. 

“So are you going to play with him again?” 

“Um… yes. He said… he did say he’d be there tomorrow too, and that he’d probably finish his book tonight so we could maybe walk together on the beach for more seashells. He knows the names of what came out of them. Mollusks.” 

“Fascinating.”

“It is!” Martin insisted. 

“Alright, alright.” 

They got back with plenty of time before his Aunt got back. Martin changed out of his beach clothes.

“Um… Gerard… thank you for taking me today.” Martins said formally. He sat up on the bed. 

“Sure,” Gerard shrugged. It was honestly nice. Even if he missed out on his own childhood it was sort of nice to see stuff like that really existed. That little Martin didn’t have to worry about studying dead languages and balance between fear entities. That his only worries were getting the attentions of his first crush. He’d grow up, live a nice normal life and not have any of the worries Gerard has, and that did ease a bit of Gerard’s own bitterness at his situation. 

“Do you know anything about mollusks?”

“...No Martin.” 


End file.
